Can-opeitek



M. LEV, 1R.

'CAN OPENER. APPLICATION FILED NOV. I. 1917.

Patented June 17, 1919.

ml emol" ark Lev ma. msumcrou. o. c.

CAN- OPENER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 1'7, 1919.

Application filed November 1, 1917. Serial No. 199,619.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, MARK LEV, Jr., a citizen of the United States, rcsidin at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Ange es, State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Can-Openers, of which the following a specification.

This invention relates to can openers; and relates particularly to a type of can opener adapted to be sold to the user with the can. And it is an object of this invention to provide a simple, inexpensive, and effective form of can opener which may be applied to the can, either during the course of manufacture of the can, or afterward; to be sold with the can and to be in convenient position for easy use.

Further object and features of my invention will be best understood from the following detailed description of a preferred specific form of can opener embodying my invention; reference for this purpose being had to the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is a plan of a can equi ped with my opener; Fig. 2 is a section taiien as indicated by line 22 on Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is an enlarged partial section showing the can opener in use; Fig. 4 is an enlarged partial section showing the opener in its normal position; Fig. 5 is a side elevation taken as indicated by line 5-5 on Fig. 4; and Fig. 6 is a section similar to that of Fig. 2, showing a modified form of mounting of the opener upon the can.

In the drawings the numeral 10 designates any ordinary form of can and 11 designates the top thereof, affixed to the can body in any preferred or desired manner. My opener embodies, as its main structuralele ment, an arm 12, preferably stamped out of suitable sheet metal; and this arm is pivoted at its inner end upon a central protuberance 13, which, in the preferred form of device, is formed by being struck up from the sheet metal of the top 11 of the can; preferably in the center of a central raised portion 14. This protuberance 13 may be struck up so as toleave a central opening in the can, which may be used as a sealing opening, being finally sealed by a drop of solder, or any other suitable material, forming a seal as shown at 15. Thus, in a preferred form of device, the Sealing hole and; the protuber ance 13 may be formed in a single operation and as one element. 4

The arm 12 is suitably formed at its outer end at 16 to form one-half of a hinge; the other part of the hinge being formed as shown at 17 (see particularly Figs. 4 and 5) from the sheet metal piece 18 which forms the cutter 19. Cutter 19 has a handle 20 made from the same piece of sheet metal; and the cutter and handle stand preferably at right angles to each other; so that, when the device is in normal position, the cutter may lie flatly over the top of the can and handle may lie flatly down the side of the can. The handle 20 may be formed in any suitable manner as shown in Figs. 1, 2, 4C and 5, it is formed with a curved finger engaging portion 21; and this part 21 also forms a reinforcing part to stifien the handle 20. I have shown the handle formed flat, at 20 in Figs. 3 and 6; and this flat form may be made of a double thickness of metal.

In the form shown in Fig. 6 the protuberance 13 is not formed directly from the sheet metal of the top 11 of the can but is formed in a piece 141 which may be soldered or otherwise attached to the top 11 of the can. This formation provides for attaching my opener to cans which are already made in any of the usual designs.

It will be seen that, in its normal position, the opener lies flatly against the top and side of the can so that it does not interfere with the close packing of the cans in packing cases. When it is desired to open the can, the member 18 is turned to the position shown in Fig. 3 (the arm 12 being sprung up slightly) and the cutter 19, which is preferably pointed, as shown in Fig. 1, is then pressed down through the can top. If it is only desired to punch a hole in the can top, the cutter is then withdrawn and placed in its normal position; but if it is desired to cut the top from the can, the cutter is then moved circumferentially around the top of the can, cutting the top out completely. The arm 12 guides the cutter in a true circular movement. If the can top has a depressed bead 25 around its edge, the cutter is situated so that it will follow this bead during its cutting operations. The cutter may be made in any form, and edged in anysuitable manner. It may be double edgedand pointed, as is indicated in Fig. 1; and it may be made of any suitable material. Although it may be desirable to use a fairly hard material for the cutter, it is not necessary to use an expensive material, or go to an expensive process of hardening, because the cutter is designed to be used for only a single operation.

It will be seen that this can opener is simple in form and convenient to use. It may be inexpensively made and very inexpensively attached to the can. And it thus provideswa simple, cheap and readily effective means, always at hand, for opening the can to which it isattached.

I donot limit .myselfto the particular details herein described, having given this detailed vdescriptionas indicative of my invention rather than limiting it Having describeda preferred formof my invention, I claim I 1. I11 combination with a can top, a radial armpivoted to the can top-at its center, and a cutter hinged upon the outer end of the arm and adapted to normally lieflatly over the can top, said cutter having a handle extending substantially at right angles to the cutter and adapted normally to lie down wardly along the side of the can, said cutter and its handle adapted'to be swung-to a position where the cutter extends downwardly and the handle extends outwardly.

2. In combination with a can. top, a protuberance in the can top formed by punching :a hole therein and forcing the metal around thehole upwardly in the form of a circular lip, a radial arm pivoted at its inner end around said protuberance and lying close to and at the outer end of the arm near the circumferentialedge ofthe'can top, a cutter mounted upon said hinge and adapted normally to lie flatly over the can top, the cutter being pointed, and the point of the cutter normally lying in toward the center of the can top, and ahandle for said cutter at sub- 1 stantially right angles thereto and normally hanging down fromvthe top overthe edge of the can,,said cutter and its handle adapted parallel to the can top, a hinge- -have hereunto subscribed to be swung to a position where the cutter extends downwardly and the handle extends outwardly.

8. In combination with a can top, a protuberance in the can top formed by punching a hole therein and forcing the metal around the hole upwardly in the form of a circular lip, a radial arm pivoted at its inner end around said protuberance and lying close toand parallel to the can top, a hinge at the cutter end of the arm near the circumferential edge of the can top, a cutter mounted upon said hingevand adapted normally to lie flat over the can top, the cutter being pointed, and the point of the cutter normally lying in toward the center of the can top, and a handle-for said cutter. at substantially right anglestthereto and normally hanging down from the top over the edge of the can, said handle having a flange portion bent up to stand out substantially at right angles to the main portion of the handle and fornling a reinforcing fiangeand a fingerhold.

In combination with a can, a cutter carrier revoluble on the can .and having a oortion extendin near the )Gl'l )heral ed e of the can, a cutter hinged to the, carrier and adapted normally to lieag'ainst, a surface of thecan adjacent the peripheral edge thereof, and a handle for the cutter joined thereto and swinging therewith on the cutter hinge, saidhandle being at right angles to the cutter ;,an dnormally lying against the can surface around the per pheral corner from the surface against which the cutter lies; the cutter and itshandle adapted to be swung tov a position where the, cutter is at rightangles to,and the handleis substantially in the plane of, the surfaceagainst which the cutter normally lies.

In witness that'Iclaim the foregoing I my name this 26th day of. October 1917.

MARK LEV, JR.

Witness JAMns TI. QBARKELEW.

. Copies ;of this patent may be obtainedrfor five .cents each, by addressingthe Commissionerof ,Patents, Washington, 11.0. 

